Patterson Pump Gives Out $1,000 Bonuses Due to Tax Reform

Local manufacturer Patterson Pump has awarded every one of its full-time employee a one-time bonus of $1,000. Patterson Pump is a division of The Gorman-Rupp Company and that company has awarded this same bonus to all of its full time employees, in every division and in every location worldwide. As stated in a press release from the company, “This bonus is in recognition of the contributions made by all of our employees to the success of The Gorman-Rupp Company this year, as well as the financial benefit we received from the recent reduction in our U.S. corporate income tax rate. This special bonus is being paid in addition to any regular profit-sharing payment which may be paid later this year.”

Industry Spotlight: Fieldale Farms

Company: Fieldale Farms
Located in Stephens County: 2005
Address: 270 Fdc Biproduct Dr Eastanollee, GA 30538
Company Website: www.fieldale.com

 In 1995, the Atlanta Journal and Constitution reported that Fieldale Farms Corporation was the sixth largest privately owned company in the state of Georgia. The company is a "fully integrated" facility for processing whole chickens smaller than 2.5 pounds and oversees its product at every stage. Chickens are bred at 700 different Fieldale breeder farms, hatched at one of four Fieldale hatcheries, fed with the product of Fieldale field mills, and processed and packed at one of Fieldale's three processing plants in North Georgia.

Industry Spotlight: Osborne Wood Products

Company Name: Osborne Wood Products
Located in Stephens County:1989
Address: 4618 Highway 123, Toccoa, GA 30577
Company Website: www.osbornewood.com

Osborne Wood Products was founded in 1979 by Stephens County native Leon and Janice Osborne. The Toccoa based company began as a sub-contracting wood supplier. Ten years after its founding Osborne saw the need for small quantities and custom sized furniture parts, leading the couple to open a specialized manufacturing plant.

Industry Spotlight: Patterson Pump

Company: Patterson Pump
Located in Stephens County: 1989
Address:  2129 Ayersville Rd, Toccoa, GA 30577
Company Website: http://www.pattersonpumps.com

The Patterson Pump Company manufactures and supplies quality pumps for fire, municipal, industrial, flood control, plumbing, and HVAC markets. They serve customers worldwide in restoring and creating new pumps that are of quality and efficient flow power. Their larger pumps can empty an Olympic sized swimming pool of 660,000 gallons in roughly 30 seconds or less. The smaller pumps have half of that flow rate. 

Industry Spotlight: American Woodmark

Company: American Woodmark
Located in Stephens County:  1988
Address:  398 Woodmark Drive Meadowbrook Industrial Park Eastanollee, GA 30538
Company Website: http://www.americanwoodmark.com/

American Woodmark is a Winchester, Virginia based cabinet manufacturing plant founded in 1980. They offer over 500 KCMA certified cabinet styles nationwide under four major brands: American Woodmark®, Shenandoah Cabinetry®, Timberlake® Cabinetry, and Waypoint® Living Spaces. The four principles which guide their actions are Customer Satisfaction, Integrity, Teamwork, and Excellence. The American Woodmark brand operates 9 manufacturing facilities across the United States, two of which are located in Kennesaw, GA and Toccoa, GA. American Woodmark is currently the 3rd largest provider of cabinetry products in North America, and is also a preferred cabinet provider for both Lowes and Home Depot.

Industry Spotlight: Nifco KTW

 
Company: Nifco KTW
Located in Stephens County: 2015
Address: 325 Hammerstone Drive, Toccoa, Georgia
Company Website: http://www.nifcoktw.com/en#start

Nifco KTW has been the source of a considerable buzz around Toccoa-Stephens County for the past year, and for good reason. The company announced their intent to locate their American headquarters here in 2015 which would include creating 200 jobs and investing $27 million within the first 5 years. But before 2015, the two companies had very different backgrounds.

Thinking Beyond County Lines

Every year, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs hosts the Georgia Academy for Economic Development for each region in Georgia. It is estimated that over 7,000 professionals have graduated from the program since its founding in 1993. This program is unique in that it does not only caters to professional economic developers, rather it welcomes all citizens who want to learn about economic development and foster growth in their communities.

This year we sent our newest Administrative Assistant, Elizabeth Jones, to the Academy to connect with our regional leaders and hopefully learn a thing or two. Today she is going to share some things she learned in the first class.